Sarasota County tweaks rules on rural growth

Published: Tuesday, March 18, 2014 at 5:14 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, March 18, 2014 at 5:14 p.m.

Developers looking to build a village in east Sarasota County may soon be able to do so on smaller pieces of land and count stormwater ponds and lakes toward the county’s open space requirement.

Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously supported those changes, and numerous others, to the county’s 2050 land use plan for villages east of Interstate 75. Some of the amendments would affect a zoning ordinance and require a second public hearing. Other changes impact the county’s Comprehensive Plan and must be sent to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity for review and comment before commissioners could approve them.

The proposed amendments to 2050 would also modify or eliminate New Urbanism zoning regulations if they don’t affect the basic structure of the traditional village center design. Greenbelts between a village center and a road could be reduced.

The change to allow lakes and stormwater ponds to be counted as open space was particularly contentious.

The 2050 plan requires a developer to maintain 50 percent open space on the property where they build.

That was a “high bar,” Commissioner Joe Barbetta said, and without including the ponds or lakes that 50 percent requirement is tough to meet.

“These stormwater ponds do have redeeming qualities and there should be credit for them,” Barbetta said.

Commissioner Nora Patterson raised concerns with the piece-by-piece changes, noting that 2050, which was implemented a decade ago, was intended with a larger goal in mind. It was supposed to preserve open space and pasture land on the outside of villages so that there are not door-to-door developments.

By nibbling away at the plan, the county could end up with something that does not remotely resemble what was intended, she said.

“If we go too far on all this the basic objective of open space is kind of gone,” Patterson said.

The amendments would weaken affordable housing requirements, eliminate New Urbanism principles, waive greenway buffers and reduce open space, Dan Lobeck, president of advocacy group Control Growth Now, stated in an email.

The requirements for mixed use, pedestrian friendly, environmentally protective developments will be replaced with, “little more than standard urban sprawl in the form of conventional subdivisions and shopping malls,” Lobeck said.

Many people echoed similar concerns at the public hearing Tuesday, saying the intent of 2050 is being lost.

But president of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce Steve Queior said there is “broad and deep support” for staff’s recommended changes, which he said reflect today’s realities and aren’t as prescriptive as the regulations voted on more than a decade ago.

If the community says everything is working well as is then they are sticking their head in the sand, Commissioner Christine Robinson said.

“I think there is a lot of value to 2050 that we are still retaining with these changes,” Robinson said, and these changes will also allow development to happen the way the county intended.

County staff began studying and preparing these amendments to 2050 last year after developers raised concerns about the plan in fall 2012, Planning Manager Allen Parsons said. In November, the county approved the first of three phases of amendments to the land use plan. On Tuesday, they considered the second group of changes.

The final phase to be considered could change the fiscal neutrality requirement that requires developers to pay for the infrastructure to support their village.

<p>Developers looking to build a village in east Sarasota County may soon be able to do so on smaller pieces of land and count stormwater ponds and lakes toward the county's open space requirement. </p><p>Commissioners on Tuesday unanimously supported those changes, and numerous others, to the county's 2050 land use plan for villages east of Interstate 75. Some of the amendments would affect a zoning ordinance and require a second public hearing. Other changes impact the county's Comprehensive Plan and must be sent to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity for review and comment before commissioners could approve them.</p><p>The proposed amendments to 2050 would also modify or eliminate New Urbanism zoning regulations if they don't affect the basic structure of the traditional village center design. Greenbelts between a village center and a road could be reduced. </p><p>The change to allow lakes and stormwater ponds to be counted as open space was particularly contentious.</p><p>The 2050 plan requires a developer to maintain 50 percent open space on the property where they build. </p><p>That was a “high bar,” Commissioner Joe Barbetta said, and without including the ponds or lakes that 50 percent requirement is tough to meet. </p><p>“These stormwater ponds do have redeeming qualities and there should be credit for them,” Barbetta said. </p><p>Commissioner Nora Patterson raised concerns with the piece-by-piece changes, noting that 2050, which was implemented a decade ago, was intended with a larger goal in mind. It was supposed to preserve open space and pasture land on the outside of villages so that there are not door-to-door developments. </p><p>By nibbling away at the plan, the county could end up with something that does not remotely resemble what was intended, she said. </p><p>“If we go too far on all this the basic objective of open space is kind of gone,” Patterson said. </p><p>The amendments would weaken affordable housing requirements, eliminate New Urbanism principles, waive greenway buffers and reduce open space, Dan Lobeck, president of advocacy group Control Growth Now, stated in an email. </p><p>The requirements for mixed use, pedestrian friendly, environmentally protective developments will be replaced with, “little more than standard urban sprawl in the form of conventional subdivisions and shopping malls,” Lobeck said. </p><p>Many people echoed similar concerns at the public hearing Tuesday, saying the intent of 2050 is being lost.</p><p>But president of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce Steve Queior said there is “broad and deep support” for staff's recommended changes, which he said reflect today's realities and aren't as prescriptive as the regulations voted on more than a decade ago.</p><p>If the community says everything is working well as is then they are sticking their head in the sand, Commissioner Christine Robinson said. </p><p>“I think there is a lot of value to 2050 that we are still retaining with these changes,” Robinson said, and these changes will also allow development to happen the way the county intended. </p><p>County staff began studying and preparing these amendments to 2050 last year after developers raised concerns about the plan in fall 2012, Planning Manager Allen Parsons said. In November, the county approved the first of three phases of amendments to the land use plan. On Tuesday, they considered the second group of changes. </p><p>The final phase to be considered could change the fiscal neutrality requirement that requires developers to pay for the infrastructure to support their village.</p>